By: Jill Wunrow (@JillWunrow)
GreenBayPhoenix.com
GREEN BAY, Wis. (GreenBayPhoenix.com) - The Green Bay men's soccer team wraps
up its three-game homestand Friday, Aug. 31 when it hosts Northern Illinois
(0-1-0) at 6:00 p.m. at Aldo Santaga Stadium. Both teams enter the contest looking
for a win after suffering tough losses against ranked opponents.
Green Bay suffered its first loss (0-1)
of the season against Marquette (2-0-0) who entered the Aug. 26 contest ranked
No. 33 in the country by TopDrawerSoccer.com and No. 34 by College Sports
Madness. In its lone contest of the 2012 season, Aug. 24, NIU scored first but
later fell 1-3 to No. 3 ranked Creighton.
After hosting the Huskies Friday to
wrap up its longest homestand of the season, the Phoenix will kick off its
longest road stretch of the season with a four game stint beginning at Niagara (1-0-1)
Sunday, Sept. 2 at 12:00 p.m.
The Phoenix is being led by senior
Whitney Browne (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) and junior Ahmad Bah (Brooklyn Park,
Minn.) who have each taken three shots while Kirby Allen (Appleton, Wis.) owns
Green Bay's lone goal.
SCOUTING NORTHERN ILLINOIS... The Huskies entered the 2012 season as the defending
Mid-American Conference champions and a second round appearance in last
season's NCAA College Cup, finishing with a 15-6-0 overall record. Northern
Illinois returns eight starters from its championship squad under fourth year
head coach Eric Luzzi.
Northern Illinois comes to Green Bay
after opening its season with a 3-1 loss at No. 3 Creighton, the same team it
fell to in the second round of last season's NCAA College Cup.
The Huskies are led by junior forward
James Stevenson who was an All-Great Lakes Second Team and All-MAC First Team
selection while senior goalkeeper Jordan Godsey who was a Third Team selection
and All-MAC First Team selection. Junior Karim Darbaki is the strength of the
Huskies midfield, entering the season as an All-MAC Second Team and NSCAA
All-Great Lakes Region Third Team selection.
Stevenson scored NIU's lone goal in
its loss at Creighton while Godsey made eight saves for the Huskies.
Friday's game will be the first
meeting between Green Bay and NIU in seven seasons with the Huskies owning a
12-15-8 edge over the Phoenix. The two teams last met Sept. 21, 2005 in DeKalb,
Ill.
SCOUTING NIAGARA... Sunday Green Bay will look to avenge its loss last season against Niagara
as it travels to New York to battle the Purple Eagles at 12:00 p.m. It will be
the third meeting between the two teams with the series even at 1-1-0. Last
season Green Bay fell 0-2 to Niagara in the Green Bay Soccer Classic.
Sunday will be Niagara's home opener
after defeating Duquesne 4-2 on the road in the Duquesne Invitational.
Sophomore midfielder Jacob Ohlin, sophomore forward Callum Willmot and
sophomore defender Michael Hanton combined for three first-half goals by the
Purple Eagles. Sophomore defender Nick Anderson added a goal in the 4-2 win for
Niagara.
Prior to its victory over host
Duquesne, the Purple Eagles kicked off the invitational with a 1-1 tie against
Pittsburgh.
Senior defender Rene De Zorzi was
named Co-MVP of the invitation for his play in the back for Niagara.
ABOUT GREEN BAY HEAD COACH DAN POPIK...Green Bay first year head coach Dan Popik brings seven
years of coaching experience on various levels in addition to six years of
playing experience at the professional level. Rated among College Soccer News'
Top-20 Assistant coaches in 2011, Popik spent the 2011 season as the associate
head coach at Furman University, helping the Paladins to a 14-4-4 record and
the program's first at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Popik also served as
the associate head coach and assistant coach at North Carolina State University
(2005-10).
Popik's six years playing at the
professional level included stints with the Columbus Crew (2006), Los Angeles
Galaxy (2004-05) and Milwaukee Rampage (2000-03). Popik's wife Jodie hails from
Menomonee Falls, Wis. and the couple has a four-year old son, Gavin.
FOLLOW THE ACTION LIVE... Fans can track live stats of Friday's game against Northern Illinois
on GreenBayPhoenix.com or follow on Twitter here. A live
video stream of Friday's game is also available on PhoenixFlix. Live stats
of Green Bay's contest against Niagara can be tracked
here.
POPIK'S TOPIKS... Be sure to check out Popik's Topiks
with head coach Dan Popik every Wednesday on GreenBayPhoenix.com for the
latest insights on Green Bay's upcoming opponents and recent contests. You can watch this week's episode of Popk's Topiks here.
NEXT ON THE SCHEDULE... Green Bay will continue its four-game road trip with the
Dayton Tournament Friday, Sept. 7 when it battles the host Flyers at 6:30 p.m.
The Phoenix concludes the tournament Sunday, Sept. 9 against Missouri State at
10:00 a.m. and wraps up its road trip Sept. 14 when it kicks off Horizon League
play at Detroit.
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